After weeks of speculation, Tristan Thompson took to Instagram to confirm the results of a paternity test, revealing that he is the father of Maralee Nichols’ one-month-old son. This comes after texts allegedly between the two were leaked where Thompson said that, due to the fact he is now technically unemployed, child support would not be substantial. So, how much will Thompson pay?
Thompson Wants To ‘Amicably’ Raise Son With Nichols
In the statement he posted on social media, Thompson wrote, “Today, paternity test results reveal that I fathered a child with Maralee Nichols. I take full responsibility for my actions. Now that paternity has been established, I look forward to amicably raising our son.”
Morghan Leia Richardson, the Matrimonial Partner with Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP in New York City, gave her best estimate for what the NBA star might end up paying Nichols each month.
“In California, basic child support is owed until the child is 18, or 19-years-old if still in high school,” Richardson said. When asked how much of Thompson’s millions the baby is entitled to, she said that “all is fair game for calculating child support.”
“For awards where the parties earn extremely high incomes, such as Tristan, the court will plug the numbers into the support calculator, but also consider several other factors,” she continued. “One argument for a larger award would be to ensure that the child has the same or similar lifestyle in both homes.”
How Will His Other Children Affect Payments To Nichols?
Thompson is also father to daughter True, whom he shares with Khloe Kardashian, and son Prince, who he shares with Jordan Craig. According to Richardson, this could factor into the discussion about how much he should pay Nichols.
“Because Tristan is paying support for other children, that will be a factor in calculating how much support he will pay for this child,” she explained. “Reports show that his income is about $10mil so based on that number, and the report that he’s paying $40k per month for his son, when I run the calculator, I get an estimate of $34k per month.”
“Usually when a parent is already paying support for another child, that amount reduces the available income to pay support to later children,” Richardson continued. “There is certainly an argument that he should pay less because he’s already supporting other children, but then again, why should this child be treated differently? It will largely depend on Tristan’s legal team and what they can present to a judge.”
When asked about how Thompson’s retirement would affect the child support payments, Richardson said, “Sports players have a limited career span, and he has 3 young children to support. I hope that everyone involved in this is setting money aside for the kids. If he is injured or can no longer play, he may at some point seek a support reduction.”